Benutzer:Tomsen/Book Report
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, usually called simply The Philosopher's Stone, as well as The Chamber of Secrets, The Prisoner of Azkaban, The Goblet of Fire, The Order of the Phoenix, The Half-Blood Prince and The Deathly Hallows are the seven books in the Harry Potter series by British writer Joanne Murray Rowling, who writes under the pen name J.K. Rowling. She modeled the main characters after her relatives, teachers from primary and secondary school, friends and many other people. In 1990, while she was on a train trip, the idea for a story about a young boy named Harry Potter, a young boy attending a school of wizardry, became clear to her. She was receiving government support when she started writing, but her success has brought her almost a billion dollars (US). J.K. Rowling has also published other books called Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch Through the Ages and The Tales of Beedle the Bard. Her books are credited with increasing the time that many children spend reading instead of watching TV or the Internet. Plot We learn that, in the time before the events of the books take place, the evil wizard Lord Voldemort attacked the infant Harry Potter, earning him the nickname "The Boy Who Lived". Lord Voldemort's body was destroyed, but he was left in a state neither dead nor alive. Only a scar on Harry's forehead is left from that time, but his parents were not so fortunate and perished in the attack. Voldemort and his followers continue their efforts to kill Harry during the whole Harry Potter Series. Harry Potter lives with his only living relatives, the Dursleys, till his 11th birthday. They never liked the young boy and tried to hide his magical power. But one November, they receive a letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry delivered by an owl. Uncle Vernon wanted to hide the letter, but he had no chance against the powers of the magical world. Each book comprises one year in Harry’s life, which he spent mostly in Hogwarts. There he learns magic, and he has to solve many problems. The title of every book is a clue to the secret of the topic of the particular book. In the first book “Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone”, the main topic is Voldemort and his attempt to obtain a new body with the Philosopher's Stone. In the second installment, “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets”, Harry has to fight against Tom Riddle, a Horuke (part of a soul) from Lord Voldemort. In “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”, he has to learn to fight against Dementors, and he meets his uncle Sirius Black, who is also a wizard. In the fourth installment “Harry Potter and Goblet of Fire”, Harry has to fight with Lord Voldemort again. In the book “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”, Harry has a prophetic vision about his future, and he has to say goodbye to his beloved uncle Sirius. In the sixth installment “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”, Dumbledore is killed, but not before he gives important information about the Horukes to Harry. In the last book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, all secrets are revealed and everything finally makes sense. Characters Harry Potter is the title character and the books cover seven years in his life, beginning with his 11th birthday, when he learns he is a wizard. His magical parents were killed by Lord Voldemort, the cruellest wizard in the magical world. Harry Potter attends Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to learn magic and his goal is to kill the "Dark Lord" (Lord Voldemort). At school he meets Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Ron Weasley is the youngest son of the Weasley family, a pure-blood family, who reside in "The Burrow". Ron is very tall and thin and has the trademark red hair of the Weasleys. Herminone is the daughter of two dentists and is Muggle-born. Her encyclopaedic knowledge helps the three close friends very often. Albus Parzival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore is the headmaster of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and the founder and leader of the Order of the Phoenix. Harry Potter and Dumbledore have a very important connection during the whole book series. He died in the sixth installment. Lord Voldemort or the "Dark Lord" is the darkest enemy of Harry Potter. He is very cruel and split his soul into pieces (in the book the parts are called "Horukes") seven times, therefore he was deathless. The Death Eaters are his devotees. There are also many other characters in the Harry Potter series, but they aren’t as important to the overall plot. Interpretation I think the whole story is from the imagination of the young J.K. Rowling. The best example is Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts. Her elderly headmaster at primary school was her inspiration for Dumbledore. But I think we can see her feelings and actual situations from her life in every book. I read somewhere that she was very ill while she was writing the book "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”, and therefore I think the Dementors are the expression of the illness. While the books are certainly very useful at dissuading children from spending all their time watching television and the Internet, they do not seem to have a clear moral, or perhaps I just didn't find it. Personal Opinion I have read all the books of the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, and the last one in English. I think "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" is the best book from the series, because every question from the previous books is answered. At the beginning I had many problems with some of the vocabulary, but after a while I read it fluently, or at least I didn’t check every single word in the dictionary. I also plan to read the last book in German, but currently I don’t have enough time.